Last Modified: Tuesday, September 17, 2013 at 1:37 p.m.

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It was the third significant arrest involving synthetic marijuana — which is also marketed as incense or potpourri — in Marion County in the past 10 days.

In Monday's case, three men were arrested and charged with unlawful possession of synthetic marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia. A week and a half before, agents arrested 13 people at six local businesses on charges of possessing synthetic marijuana. Last week, agents arrested a man after synthetic marijuana was found in the trunk of his car.

Officials said it is not yet clear if the three cases are connected or if they are related to a larger problem reported statewide.

Synthetic marijuana is described as a dangerous mixture of illegal components sold in stores targeting young people, with colorful packaging that often features cartoon characters.

Florida's Attorney General Pam Bondi has described the drugs as "more lethal than cocaine."

The Florida Legislature outlawed many of the substances used to make the drugs, but enforcement efforts had often been stymied because as soon as a substance was banned, the manufacturers changed the formula. Recent strengthening of the law, however, as well as increased on-site testing capabilities, has increased the number of arrests and will make prosecution of the cases more effective, officials said.

Law enforcement officials last week enacted "Operation Bad Dreamer," where investigators executed search warrants at labs in Flager and St. Johns counties that were used to manufacture synthetic marijuana. Eleven people were arrested and, if convicted, could face up to 60 years in prison.

Nearly 23,000 of 2.5 million drug-related emergency visits in 2001 were associated with the synthetic drugs known as bath salts, according to a report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. It was the first national study to track such data and states that adverse reactions to the drugs can range from problems with heart and blood vessels, to depression, thoughts of suicide, psychosis and death.

Maj. Tommy Bibb, head of the Marion County Sheriff's Office Major Crimes Division, said the use of synthetic marijuana is "a big problem throughout the United States."

He said the prior lack of regulations and state statutes was a hindrance in enforcement efforts, but that is changing.

"Now that we have state statutes that deal with K2, it gives law enforcement officials a little more teeth in enforcing the law and proactive enforcement to remove it from the shelves," Bibb said. "We (the Unified Drug Enforcement Strike Team) have a zero tolerance of the sale, possession or distribution of K2. And, if anyone out there is engaging in this illegal activity, we're coming to get you."

And, he added, "Let's face it, anyone who consumes an uncontrolled or unregulated drug such as K2 is playing Russian roulette with their lives."

Monday's arrests came on a tip to law enforcement.

According to drug agents, Lt. Dennis Joiner, State Road 200 district commander for the Marion County Sheriff's Office, got a tip about a possible stash of fake pot at the former Sunrise Donuts & Coffee at 10155 SW County Road 484.

Joiner went to the long-closed business around 7:30 p.m. and spoke to a man getting out of a U-Haul truck. Joiner saw boxes that appeared to contain packets of K2. The man, Fares Rabah, 41, a Louisiana bail bondsman with a Texas address, came out of the back of the truck and told Joiner he was loading empty K2 packets for delivery to Tampa. Rabah told Joiner there were two other people inside and gave him permission to enter the vehicle and talk with them. Joiner spoke with Ahmed Mohsin, 36, and Ahmad Warayat, 27, both of Tampa, and saw a large number of Ziploc bags containing synthetic marijuana, according to the arrest report.

Joiner contacted the Unified Drug Enforcement Strike Team (UDEST), which includes personnel from the Marion County Sheriff's Office and the Ocala Police Department.

Drug agents obtained a search warrant for the building and vehicle and confiscated 11,623 packages of finished product, 40 pounds of loose finished product not yet packaged, 120 pounds of pre-production leafy content used to make the so-called K2 or Spice, and several hundred thousand empty packages waiting to be filled.

Agents estimated the street value of the seized products at more than $500,000.

The three men were charged with unlawful possession of synthetic marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia. According to drug agents, the suspects said they knew nothing about the product being manufactured there.

"Information recovered at the scene showed that their goal was to produce 100,000 packages of finished product per week. However, their possible destinations are currently being investigated," said sheriff's Lt. Scott Byrd, a supervisor for UDEST and the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Agency commander.

The police operation was wrapped up shortly after 3 a.m. Tuesday. All three men who were arrested declined to comment.

Agents said Warayat and Rabah are originally from Jordan and Moshin is from Iraq. None of the men are United States citizens but are legal residents of the country, officials said.

On Sept. 12: Sandeepkumar Brahmbhatt, 30, of Orlando, was arrested following a traffic stop in Ocala when officers found 1,082 packages of synthetic marijuana in the trunk of the car he was driving.

The stop by a Sheriff's Office patrol deputy occurred after he saw the car moving slowly on a busy road and ran the vehicle's tag. It came back showing that one of the registered owners had an arrest warrant out of Duval County. A routine inspection turned up the drugs, which were tested on the spot and came back positive for illegal substances.

Brahmbhatt told a drug agent he was taking the products to his girlfriend's home in Leesburg to burn them. He said he was traveling from Orlando to Leesburg and got lost. He also told the agent he was arrested for a similar offense earlier this year, according to reports.

And on Sept. 5 and 6, members of UDEST confiscated 3,516 packets of synthetic marijuana, more 1,500 pipes and more than $29,000 in cash, and arrested 13 people at six businesses — five in Ocala and one in Belleview — in an undercover sting called Operation K2.

Agents obtained search warrants after learning that some local businesses were selling the illegal product. One store owner told them he knew selling the product was illegal, but he was doing it anyway, according to reports.

In the two most recent cases, Brahmbhatt and Rahbar both mentioned a connection with Tampa. Agents with the strike team said officials in the Tampa area have reported a rise in synthetic marijuana arrests and that it appears people are traveling there to buy or ship the product.

The agents said they want to know more about the three men arrested Monday, such as who their customers are and whether they are aware of any other staging areas for the distribution of K2.

The agents said they have previously conducted some investigations locally and recovered some of the ingredients used to make the product, but nothing on the scale of what was found Monday.

"The biggest we've had in the county," Bibb said about the bust.

State and local officials say they will continue to battle those who make the drugs. In April, the state Legislature passed a law banning 27 kinds of synthetic drugs. Ocala and Belleview have ordinances that ban the sale of synthetic marijuana. Marion County is considering such a ban.

Chief Assistant State Attorney Ric Ridgway said last week the cases will be handled like other drug cases. He acknowledged that makers of the illicit drugs often change the formulas, but said crime lab testing has gotten better for on-site identification. He said the substances also are typically sent to a second lab for additional verification, which can strengthen the case.

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118 or austin.miller@starbanner.com.

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